Bay's Best Film Since 'The Rock'

Rating: 9/10 (10 July 2005)

Michael Bay took action films to the next level in his 1996 spectacle, 'The Rock'. Flashforward to 2005's 'The Island' and Bay has once again found the balance between rock hard eye-candy and engaging story that makes his films perfect summer popcorn fare. Unlike 'Pearl Harbor', a film that should have seen Bay only tackling 2nd unit directing duties (i.e. action scenes), 'The Island' plays to all of the director's distinctive visual talents, while never allowing him to stray outside his narrative boundaries. Can Michael Bay do intense/suspenseful? Yes! Can he dig into the guts of his characters and find the subtleties and quirks that make for memorable cinema? Absolutely not! But, that's not why moviegoers buy tickets to a Bay flick. Hands down, no one in Hollywood can best Michael Bay's drop-jaw action extravaganza. As long as he's blowing things up, he's unstoppable. What makes 'The Island' so enjoyable is that amidst the amazing action sequences is an original story with compelling characters. The only thing that prevents me from rating 'The Island' as Excellent, is the same ho-hum ending that plagues all of Bay's movies. But then, if we waited for movies with great endings, Hollywood would go bankrupt. 'The Island' is a crowd-pleaser for most of the family, minus the little ones. Some scenes are too intense for youngsters and parents should do their children a favor and go see the flick before they expose anyone under 15 to its dark themes and brutal moments. In closing, 'The Island' works hard for your cinema dollars and hits its mark dead-on. Enjoy!